Swedish Pastry Powerhouse Pays U.S. a Visit

Meryle Evans -
May 14th, 2014

When Patrik Fredriksson was crowned Pastry Chef of the Year in Sweden in 2013, one of the rewards was a trip to anywhere in the world. Fortunately for New Yorkers, the Gothenburg native, who also won the gold medal at the Culinary Olympics in Germany the previous year, chose Gotham. No problem making connections here, of course, as Fredriksson happens to be the executive pastry chef at Marcus Samuelsson's Norda Bar & Grill in their mutual home town on the west coast of Sweden. During his visit, Fredriksson managed to combine sightseeing and dining in the city with showcasing his delectable desserts at Red Rooster. There were get-togethers with his fellow countrymen at Fika, and meals he enjoyed at Buddakan, DBGB Kitchen and Bar, SushiSamba, and Atera, where he tweeted "one of my best dessert experiences."

Gothenburg journalist Maria Zihammou, coincidently in New York City to write an article about Samuelsson, joined a dessert tasting at Red Rooster and explained the provenance of the typically Swedish cakes that Fredriksson has turned into ethereal deconstructed compositions. The popular Swedish princess cake, traditionally a dome-shaped cake covered with pale green marzipan, emerged from the Harlem kitchen elongated on a plate, with a delicate strip of marzipan, small scoops of vanilla mousse, raspberry sorbet, and a cream-filled mini doughnut. Another favorite, the Swedish cloud, made of pistachio sponge cake, rhubarb sorbet, cream cheese foam, and lemon/elderberry curd, is being offered as a special springtime dessert throughout the month of April at Red Rooster. It fits right in with Fredriksson's philosophy that “the sky’s the limit.”